Another tragic incident involving beach trash. This guy, another bird still in baby feathers has a huge fish hook stuck in his leg. That pink bump is the shrimp bait that the fisherman had been using. What happened was that the irresponsible fisherman who caught the bird just cut it loose with four feet of fishing line still attached. The bird was really friendly, who knows, maybe it knew I could help. I took a few pictures to show people that they had to be responsible, and then I borrowed the first aid kid from the pier manager, and had a bystander hold the bird while I pulled out the hook and applied antiseptic ointment.

Don't try this unless you have been trained! I work at a wildlife center, and I have done this before! If you find an injured animal, wear gloves and capture it if you can, or contact your local game warden or wildlife center. Take it to a trained professional like a vet or a wildlife rehab center where they can help it!

Please fish responsibly! Don't leave your hooks and lines laying around where animals can get hurt! And pick up your crap, don't leave it behind!!!

closeup of the hook here: [link]